Payoff Pitch (Philadelphia Patriots) (20 page)

She felt his body go still. “Cristina,” he ground out against her lips.

Shit.

Teddy had forgotten, too. The housekeeper seemed to sleep like the dead once she turned in, but wouldn’t it be just her luck to have Cristina saunter out to the kitchen for a glass of water or something just when Teddy was flat on the table with Noah pounding into her.

Because, in her lust-induced haze, that was exactly what Teddy envisioned happening within moments—Noah doing her right there on the table. The idea shocked the hell out of her because she’d never done anything remotely that adventurous in her life.

But with Noah, it seemed like all her boundaries had collapsed like the walls of Jericho.

Noah paused for a beat, as if caught up short by her words. Then his gaze dipped down over her body again and a wry smile tilted up the corners of his mouth. “You got it, babe. Let’s get that crazy pooch inside and then I’m taking you up to bed.”

The husky timbre of his voice had her shivering all over again, but this time not from the cold. For a moment, the world tilted to a crazy perspective as she realized she was finally going to have sex with Noah Cade—gorgeous, smart, rich, and totally cool Noah Cade. For a small town girl like her, it was a heady prospect.

While he opened the back door and softly whistled for Toby to come in, Teddy dropped back down in a crouch to do a quick finish of the floor with the Lysol wipes. A few moments later, she heard a clatter of nails followed by the feel of a cold nose snuffling at her neck.

“You big goof,” she said to Toby as he leaned against her. “Are you finished making trouble tonight?”

“I gotta tell you, Teddy,” Noah murmured as he eyed her backside, “that particular pose is really working for me. You’ve got that whole maid and master vibe going on there.”

He opened the biscuit container and pulled out a cookie for the dog. When he tossed it, Toby jumped up to catch it. He happily crunched away while Teddy came to her feet.

“Would you like me to put on a frilly white apron and some black stockings and a garter belt?” she asked sarcastically.

He looked incredulous. “Well, yeah. What man wouldn’t?”

She shook her head. “So sad to find out you’re a sexist pig.”

“Well, this sexist pig thinks it’s time to get it on,” he said, still keeping his voice low. He looked at the dog and pointed a finger toward the living room. “Toby, go find Sadie and go to sleep.”

The dog—for once—obediently trotted out of the room

“Huh,” Teddy said, shaking her head. “That was different.”

Noah closed the small gap between them. “Enough talk about the kids, honey.”

In one swift, graceful move he dipped down in front of her and tipped her over his shoulder, then stood upright. Stunned to find herself dangling upside down in the classic fireman’s carry, Teddy could only manage a startled squeak. One of his big hands clamped on her ass, holding her steady.

“Like I said,” Noah said as he strode with her to the staircase, “time to get it on.”

Even though Teddy had trouble catching her breath, she couldn’t agree more.

Noah had already reached the top of the stairs before it occurred to her that he might end up hurting his arm. It must be all the blood rushing to her head that was making her stupid—that, or her brain had become completely addled with lust.

“Noah, don’t hurt yourself,” she managed to get out in a semi-strangled voice.

He gave her butt an affectionate pat. “Don’t worry, I put you over my uninjured shoulder. Besides, I have you right where I want you.”

“Hanging upside down?” she asked with a breathless laugh.

“Nope, completely under my control.”

He followed up that outrageous comment with a totally unexpected slap on her butt. It was more a love tap than anything else, but it landed low on her cheeks and sent a surprising little jolt through her clit.

“Noah Cade!” she yelped as he strode down the hall toward his room. “What in God’s name was that?”

His laugh rumbled through him and into her breasts, pressed tight against his back.

“Just a little foreplay,” he said.

A moment later, he had her in his bedroom and kicked the door shut behind them. He headed to the huge bed between the two French doors that led out to the upstairs veranda and carefully dumped her on top of the mattress. Teddy bounced a couple of times before she managed to push herself upright.

She pushed her hair out of her eyes and gazed up at the stellar image of masculinity looming over her. There was a small lamp on the table by the ensuite bathroom, the dim light softly outlining Noah’s broad shoulders and lean hips. His face was in shadow, but she didn’t need a spotlight to pick up the intensity coloring his eyes as he studied her bunched up shirt, exposed panties and naked legs.

“So, we’re into a bit of BDSM, are we?” she asked. “Too bad I left my handcuffs in the other room.”

He laughed as he started to strip off his T-shirt. “Don’t worry, I’ve got a pair. But why don’t we leave those for later.”

“You’re the boss,” she quipped, enjoying the silly banter.

“And don’t you forget it, babe,” he said in a husky voice that promised the kind of things Teddy had only ever dreamed about before.

When Noah tossed his shirt in the general direction of the chair near his dresser, Teddy’s mouth went dry. God, he was ten times of gorgeous, and she couldn’t wait to get her hands on him.

If, that is, she didn’t pass out from a crazy combination of nerves and excitement first.

Noah toed off his runners but didn’t bother removing his jeans. Instead, he grabbed her by the ankles and gently pulled her toward the edge of the bed. “Let’s get that off,” he said, lifting her into a sitting position before reaching for the hem of her sleep shirt.

Teddy obediently lifted her arms up. “So, you really enjoy this ordering people around, don’t you?” she joked as he pulled the soft cotton up over her head.

Yes, she was babbling a bit and trying to make dumb little jokes, but it was her way of trying to maintain some small sense of control over what was happening. Right now, she felt like she was on a runaway train. A small part of her brain was warning her that she was heading for a spectacular derailment off a high bridge, but her body couldn’t wait to get busy with him.

“Well, it is good to be king,” he said in a kind of distracted voice as he tossed her shirt after his.

She huffed out a laugh at his answer. Then she hooked her thumbs into her panties and started to wriggle them off. When her gaze snagged on her mangled finger, she momentarily froze. She rarely noticed it, much less thought about it—except when having sex. Teddy knew she had a pretty nice body but had always known her finger stood out like a, well, sore thumb. The guys she’d been with in the past had all ignored it—or tried to—but her awareness of it never failed to make her feel self-conscious and vulnerable.

And with Noah, it was even worse. He pretty much defined the perfect man, at least physically, and she was a far from perfect woman.

Before she had the chance to get too complexed about it, Noah took her hand and brought it to his lips for a soft kiss. Then he turned it over and gave the inside of her palm a slow, hot lick. She practically melted on the spot—both her heart
and
her body.

“Leave your panties on for now,” he said. “I like the way they look on you.”

Yep. The big guy definitely had a thing for control, at least in the bedroom. Teddy had never much gone in for the alpha male thing when it came to sex, but right now it was really, really working for her.

He pushed her knees open and knelt between her spread thighs. “Oh, yeah,” he growled, as his hands came up to cup her breasts. “Let me look at you, Teddy. You’re so fucking beautiful.”

She swallowed a moan when he thumbed her nipples, bringing them to rigid, aching points. When he gently pulled on them she gasped and clenched her thighs tight against his jean-clad hips. The sensation of the rough denim against her inner thighs made her shiver even harder.

“Oh, my God, Noah,” she managed as she grabbed his biceps. “I think you’re doing more than just looking at me.”

He gave her a truly wicked grin. “I’m good at multi-tasking. And, by the way, I have to say that your tits feel as good as they look.”

He tweaked both nipples again, and this time she couldn’t hold back a moan. She dug her nails into his muscled arms.

“Mmm, that’s very nice,” he murmured. “I like hearing you moan, Teddy. But I want you to let go of me now and stretch your arms out behind you.”

She sucked in a deep breath and managed to unclamp her fingers from their death grip around his biceps.

“That’s it,” he said, adjusting her hands flat and a little behind her. “Now straighten your arms.”

She followed his instructions, her straight-armed pose arching her back and thrusting her breasts up high.

“Perfect.” His head dipped down close to one of her nipples. She could feel his hot breath washing over her sensitized skin. “Whatever I do, Teddy, just keep your hands on the bed. Don’t move and don’t touch me.”

She stared up at him, taking in his taut features and glittering gaze. The man looked ready to devour her, and that had her biting back a whimper of excitement. Sex with Noah was shaping up to be way more intense and way more nerve-wracking than she’d anticipated, probably because she felt no sense of control. While that had always been a total buzz kill for her, not this time. Not with Noah.

Because, she realized, she trusted him. It was crazy and, yeah, probably stupid to be doing this with him, but she did trust him to keep her safe.

“I want to hear you say that you won’t move until I tell you to,” Noah said in a rasping voice that did funny things to her insides.

As if your insides haven’t already completely gone into meltdown.

“I won’t move until you tell me to,” she said in a voice that sounded too high and breathy to be hers.

He smiled. “Good girl.”

Then he brought his head down those crucial few inches and sucked her nipple into his mouth. She moaned again, resisting the impulse to fall back onto the bed. If she’d been standing when he’d done that, Teddy was certain she would have collapsed in a heap on the floor.

For the next few minutes, while her arms shook with the effort to remain locked, Noah played with her. He sucked and licked one breast while his hand toyed with the other. The sensations fractured through her, his hot mouth pulling the nipple into a tight, throbbing point, while his hand tweaked and tugged on the other one. Then he switched, tormenting the rigid tip until it ached with a delicious fire that burned all the way down to her clit.

And the fact that she couldn’t touch him, as much as she wanted to, made the sensations all the more intense. Her entire focus narrowed to his mouth and hands on her breasts, and the feel of his big body between her thighs.

A particularly hard, thrilling suck had her arching her back even as she started to collapse back onto her elbows. “Oh, God,” she gasped as she tried to stiff-arm herself in place. She failed miserably, barely able to keep herself upright.

Noah straightened up. His eyes gleamed dark and hot, and his mouth was damp from sucking on her.

“Hmm, I thought I told you not to move,” he said, one hand gently massaging her breast. His other hand went to his zipper. He pulled it down, exposing his white briefs. The head of his penis pushed up over the waistband, flushed dark and looking huge. He looked like a gorgeous, primitive hunk and was, she had to admit, kind of intimidating.

“Well, I tried,” she said. “But you’re making it pretty damn difficult, which I think was your evil plan all along.”

He let out a low chuckle. “You’re right, because now I get to punish you just a little bit.”

She managed to arch on eyebrow at him. “And what, exactly, does that involve?”

He laid one hand flat on the center of her chest, his fingers spreading wide to touch her breasts. “First, you lie down with your arms over your head.”

Teddy let out a dramatic sigh. “If you insist.”

“Oh, I do.”

She let herself fall gently onto the mattress, even though her legs still dangled over the edge. Then she propped her hands under her head so she could still watch him.

Noah kept one hand on her breast while the other went to his briefs. He tugged them down to let his impressive erection spring free. Teddy swallowed, and she could feel herself going even softer and wetter at the sight of him. When his fingers went around his cock and began stroking down its length, she couldn’t keep a soft moan from passing her lips. Of course, the needy sound could also have something to do with the fact that his other hand was still playing with her nipple.

“Now, Teddy,” Noah said, his voice softly reprimanding, “I told you to stretch your arms right up above your head. And keep them there until I tell you otherwise.”

She stretched her arms up over her head, clenching her hands together. That arched her back a bit, pushing her breast up into his hand.

“Nice,” he rumbled. “You do have gorgeous tits, babe, with sweet pink nipples, just like candy. And I intend to enjoy them some more. Later.”

Good. God
.

Teddy had never been with a guy who seemed to relish dirty talk as much as he did, and she’d never been much interested in it. But coming from Noah, she could see the appeal.

“And what happens now?” she managed to get out in a squeaky voice.

“This,” he said.

He hooked his fingers into the waistband of her panties and drew them down her legs, flicking them to the floor. A moment later, his hands clamped on her thighs, spreading her wide and exposing her fully. Everything inside her went tight and hot with anticipation.

And boy did he ever look, using his fingers to gently part her folds.

“Oh, man, you’re so pretty, babe,” he whispered. “So soft and wet.”

Teddy had to clamp one hand firmly around her other wrist to keep her arms in place. She
loved
what was going to happen next, and it hadn’t happened nearly enough in her life, as far as she was concerned.